Sports Night - Final Instructions

Final instructions for tomorrow’s sports night (31st May)

Everyone should be up at the club for 6:30 so the teams can be selected and we can get started for 7pm. If you are running late but are definitely coming could you let someone know and we will allocate you a team.

I have been told that you won’t get too sweaty at the sports event so no need to shower before the quiz but you might want to bring a change of T-shirt for a quick change.

Any questions ask below and will do my best to find out the answer.

Looking forward to seeing everyone.

Summer Pub Run

This year's Summer Pub run will be Friday 12th July. Be up at the club at 1740 for an 1800 star (the early arrival time is needed to list drink orders and collect money). It will be £15 if you are on soft drinks, £25 otherwise. Everyone welcome.

Eddie 

Club Training Thursday 30th May

Thursday is a repeat of one of our 10k race specific sessions, the 8 x 1km with recovery approximately equal to half the effort time approximately. Ideally I would have used the same route as last time to aid pace judgement but I suspect the Glen is treacherous with mud, so we'll avoid that.

To make this more specific to the packs where a small range of abilities will be present, I am setting the recoveries as follows:

10k range    Recovery

35 - 40        2:00 minutes

40 - 45        2:15 minutes

45 - 50        2:30 minutes

50 - 55        2:45 minutes

55 - >60      3:00 minutes

Take account of who is in your pack when setting the recovery.

This will be done as a continuous session out in the country. Warm up along Strathaven Rd and continue to the 90 degree corner at the bottom of the hill near the Auldhouse 5k start. Start the first rep there and run past Park Farm. At the junction with Leaburn Rd, turn right along Leaburn Rd, stay on Leaburn Rd all the way to the end where it turns downhill. At the bottom of the hill, turn right and then left past the kennels on Shields Rd. At Greenhills Rd turn right back to the Strathaven Rd. In the unlikely event that you run out of road before the session is finished, turn right at the roundabout on the top of the hill at the Kelvin and run around the Sainsbury's loop anti-clockwise to finish.

It's a bit undulating but apart from the first rep, should be flat enough to be able to average the target pace over each rep. During the recovery, the faster ones should turn around and jog back to their pack.

Alan

Edinburgh Marathon - To Do or Not To Do?

A last minute opportunity arose for a place in the Edinburgh Marathon. Not ever having run a marathon before, indecision ruled the day. 

It's not the sort of thing you do casually but recently my running has been without any focus as all of the shorter races that I usually do were sold out 10 weeks in advance (not sure I mentioned my displeasure to anyone). Anyway that left me just looking for something different. I was thinking I would just take it easy and get round but the devil on the other shoulder said "dont be daft you've no chance". 

I sought some advice. 

Alan asked " why would you want to do a marathon without 6 months of training ? " 

Karen said " do it , but be prepared to hate parts of it and to hate yourself for agreeing to do it " 

Neither had been to motivational school ! 

A guy in my work said he had checked on Strava and that I was good to go, the data said so ! In fact Garmin predicted a 3:30 time (if only). 

So on Friday night I made the decision to go for it. Hardly time to make arrangements never mind carb loading. 

The logistics were a bit tricky because it starts in central Edinburgh and finishes in Musselburgh. 

I decided to drive to Ingleston and get the tram into Edinburgh. The rain was bouncing and wipers were at full speed, but the tram was an easy journey to Princess St. I sat next to a guy on the tram who unloaded his provisions into his running pack. He must of had 10 gels, 2 Mars Bars, packets of electrolytes, granola bars, and then filled every last space with Jelly Babies and Wine Gums. By the time he finished I was having a meltdown about my lack of provisions.  

After dropping my bag I had some time to kill and everyone was just trying to find a bit of shelter. 

For a marathon that's known as generally having good weather, it's hard to describe just how cold and wet it was. 

I had printed off a pace band for 4 hours, not because I was chasing a time but just so that I had an idea of where I was on the course. That disintegrated in the rain even before the start. 

A 4 hour marathon was around 5:30 - 5:40/km so that was my approximate target, at least through the first 30K. 

Although no marathon experience I've been around so many people in the Club that at least I thought I understood the mechanics. I knew that it was about getting through the first 30k unscathed. 

My pen was quite far back so it was a slow start. In fact it was a very slow start. It starts in the old town and drops quite steeply into Princess St Gardens which is very narrow. Past the Parliament and into Holyrood Park where it was so narrow it was almost unrunnable. Maybe I was just too far back but the first 5k was really congested. I can only really compare to the Glasgow Half but I think that was much more runnable. 

By the time we were onto the coast the rain had stopped but there was a biting wind coming off the sea. 

I have to say the crowds were amazing on the way out. Why people come out in the pouring rain to support random runners I'll never know, but very much appreciated even though most of the cardboard signs were disintegrating. 

I've never taken any more than 3 gels so I was worried about taking too many. I targeted 1 every 50 mins. Somebody also gave me half a dozen Salt Stick electrolyte tablets. I was really, really worried about taking these so waited until we were near Mussleburgh to try one in case I needed emergency facilities. It turned out they were quite pleasant. 

I was very conscious of not going too hard so kept an eye on my km splits. 

So here's my gripe. I thought a marathon was quite sociable and it would be chatting all the way round. In reality it felt like just about everyone had headphones in. As I came out of Mussleburgh I got in tow with a guy at my pace and we chatted away which kept me going for the next 10k or so. 

Things were going remarkably well as I went for Gel at the turn (around 28k) only to find that I must have dropped 1 or 2 and I only had 2 left to see me home. I decided to keep one for 32k which gave me one more for 37k. 

There wasn't as much of a crowd on the way back but I was running steady enough. In fact if I changed the pace at all, even slowing, I was starting to get cramp twinges. So I was just trying to keep the effort and pace steady as the KM rolled by. My biggest problem were the soles of my feet because my trainers and socks were soaking before the start of the race.

Through 37k I couldn't face my last gel and decided just to battle it out. 

Ironically as I got to the last 400m I tried to pick it up and my calf seized. I was raging. There was no way I was walking down the finishing straight. Think of all those photographers.  I slowed down to free it off and got moving again. 

I was delighted with a sub 4 time off the back of no specific training. I have to say that having a totally stress free run without chasing a time was most enjoyable. Maybe it will catch on ... everybody could have one "race" a year where they just do it for the shear pleasure of running. 

As a marathon I don't have anything to compare it to but I sensed it was probably on the low-end scale of things. 

Although we crossed timing mats on the course there was not tracking or 5k splits available. I stuck an Air Tag in my pocket which worked quite well in terms of tracking general progress (and Frances would at least know if I ended up in Edinburgh Royal). 

The buses back into Edinburgh were queued but then it must be difficult to move that many people and you need to expect a bit of a wait. 

A couple of really negative points 

- they lifted the bags out of the baggage trucks to reduce queuing time but leaving bags in the open air when it was pouring down was nothing short of ridiculous. 

- they also ran out of medals later on. For people that are running 5 or 6 hours they have suffered for their craft and to not get a medal on the day was really unforgivable. 

It is known as a fast flat course and maybe it is if you get a wave near the start, but certainly not further back (I moved into a 4 hour hour pen). 

Anyway to finish on a positive, for me it was about trying something different. Admittedly it was a fairly modest time which many in the club have better times this year, but it gave me such a boost. I have my running mojo back. Anyone for an October marathon ?

Stephen

West Highland Way Report

Last weekend, the Calderglen Harriers team participated in the yearly West Highland Way Relay.

Despite the early start, the team's enthusiasm remained high. Everyone was keen to find out which section of the relay Alan had assigned them to.

Fortunately, the weather was on our side, providing a warm morning that allowed the runners to begin the first segment in shorts and vests.

In the early hours, a few midges  spoiled the wait, but they soon vanished with the rising sun, and we were able to continue our adventure without any problems.

 

It was a relief to find that all team members made it back without getting lost, and we were all ready to enjoy dinner at the hotel, followed by a few drinks.

Sunday offered a day of leisure, with options for swimming, exploring Fort William, or simply catching up on sleep. 

Post-breakfast, we embarked on a scenic forest walk, made a brief visit to Glen Coe Ski Centre, and then headed back to East Kilbride.

The weekend was delightful, filled with fun and laughter. A huge thanks goes to Frances Ferguson for her excellent organisation of the weekend, to Alan Derrick for managing the legs and Kenny and Eddie for driving the minibus.

 

Júlia

Club Training Monday 27th May - Chatelherault

Monday is hopefully a not too muddy lap of Chatelherault. As per usual, the aim is to run this aerobically, at a level of effort that will be dictated by the hills. Unavoidably the heart rate will creep up on the uphills (particularly the first half of the route) and the log jam but the aim should be to let the heart rate come back under control off the top of the hills and not let it keep creeping up until this becomes a hard run. As I mentioned the last time, taking 5 minutes longer on the run at a slightly lower effort level will have more training impact than running faster and reaching further into and beyond aerobic.

Alan

Club Training Thursday 23rd May

Thursday's session is a post-race recovery run given the excellent turnout at Land O'Burns last night. Recovery runs should be very slow, conversational effort.

The route is Strathaven Rd to start of Auldhouse 5k at Langlands, up to Leaburn Rd, turn right and follow that along to the end until it turns down hill. At the bottom of the hill turn right then left past the kennels and back to the club via Shields Rd and Greenhills Rd.

Alan 

Club Training Monday 20th May

Monday's session is both a post-WHW recovery run and pre-race session for those doing the Land O'Burns 10k on Wednesday. As always on pre-race runs, the intention is to keep the legs moving quickly but for short duration such that the legs "remember" how to move at race pace come Wednesday but are not fatigued. Furthermore, those running on the WHW will have tired quads in particular, so we don't want to do too much but do want to loosen the legs off.

The session is at Langlands Place, following an easy warm-up along Strathaven Rd and round via Sainsburys. Once there, do 10 x 200m at slightly faster than 10k pace with a 200m jog recovery (i.e. keep on jogging to the end of the 400m straight on the recovery after each rep). No sprinting as we don't want tight hamstrings for Wednesday! Stay light on the feet and relaxed without straining. Ease back the pace if you find that you can't stay relaxed through each rep. Cool down back through the glen, entering the glen opposite Sainsburys yard.

Alan

WHW Relay 2024 - A scorcher

A wonderful weekend was had by all on one of the warmest weekends we have had for the WHW Relay. Thanks to all who participated for making this such an enjoyable weekend, particularly Frances for once again booking the hotel for a weekend that coincided with this year's Summer. A selection of the photos are here which tell some of the story. Feel free to add more.

Alan

Club Training Thursday 16th May

Thursday's session is 12 x 2 minutes at 10k race effort with a 2 minute jog recovery (regrouping into your pack during this recovery).

The route is a start through the Glen to Langlands. This is the easy paced warm-up. Start the first rep at Langlands junction, passing Langlands Club House on the way to Auldhouse Cross. Carry straight on through Auldhouse Cross and turn right to past the kennels. Continue on Shields Rd back to Greenhills Rd. Turn right on Greenhills Rd and head back to the club.

The overall distance is a bit shorter than recent Thursdays due to many of the Harriers making an early start for the WHW on Saturday morning.

Alan

Club Training Monday 13th May - Chatelherault

Monday is at Chatelherault. See the earlier post here for details of where to meet and options for being picked up from the club. As usual, the aim is to run a steady lap, not a time trial and not a race. To get maximum benefit from the lap of Chatelherault, it is important to pace yourself such that you can run comfortably all the way. It seems obvious but we all forget, running the lap 5 minutes slower gives you 5 minutes more of sub-maximal aerobic training meaning a longer session and a quicker recovery to train again the next day.

Alan

Being Taught A Lesson on the WHW

I had been looking back at old blog posts and  I did one back in May 2016 for a day out on the Way. That one was a run from Glencoe Ski center, through Bridge of Orchy and up to Tyndrum. That had been my original plan for this trip but the Citylink bus being sold out put paid to that. (I should maybe have booked earlier than the day before) . 

So with a bit of rearranging the revised plan was to get the Mallaig train to Bridge of Orchy, run back through Tyndrum, Crianlarich to Beinglass Farm. I had originally planned to go down the A82 to Ardlui but as there is no footpath I was strongly advised against this when I phoned the lady at the Drovers to check.  However I realised I could continue down the WHW on the lochside and get the ferry across to Ardlui so that I could catch the train 

So with Plan B worked out I headed off for a Day on the Way. 

I've heard some of our ultra runners (not that I'm claiming to be an ultra runner but the point is the same) say that you sometimes make one mistake and never recover. That happened to me. Like a good boy scout I had prepared for all eventualities. Spare running gear, change of clean clothes, food, 2 phones, battery bank, map ... there wasn't much I didn't have. And as I walked to EK station I knew my rucksack was too heavy.

Anyway the journey up was enjoyable, although the train was packed - mainly with tourists and pensioners - so I would consider booking a seat in future. The scenery was amazing and we then pulled in to Bridge of Orchy station.  

First leg from BoO to Tyndrum was quite tough. It is mostly uphill but although the sun hadn't quite broke through the biggest problem was the wind as it was funneled through the hills. It was a tough slog into the wind but a very enjoyable downhill couple of km into Tyndrum (about 11km) . At this point I was buoyed and even treated myself to a mint Magnum. 

I filled a 500ml soft flask with water and an energy sachet, ate half a protein bar and I was off again. This was where my original mistake caught up with me. Even though I was soaked with sweat I decided I didn't want to carry too much water due to the weight so all I had was 500ml. It's a fairly nice 5k through out of Tyndrum and through the Wigwams but by the time i got to the road crossing I had drank most of my flask. There's no other way to describe the roller coaster section other than brutal. It felt like I was climbing for ever and although its only about 5k I was already low on fuel and liquid. I hadn't really though through that the WHW doesn't go into Crianlarich but instead is about a mile away so when I stopped at the Harriers' check point I had nothing left (20km in). The sun was up by this point and I was out of fluid. I couldn't eat anything either. 

This was my sliding doors moment. I should have jogged down to Crianlarich, enjoyed a couple of pints in the sun and caught the train home. Of course I didn't do that! I convinced myself that Crianlarich to Beinglass was downhill, when in fact if is generally downhill but like all of the Way could be classed as undulating at best. 

At 23km I got my first cramp, a muscle just above the knee on the inside of the leg that I didn't even know that I had. I briefly considered turning around but it was 3k back uphill so I cracked on. At 25k I was really struggling as cramp kicked in all over both legs. No water and I couldn't eat anything. Joking aside I wasn't in a good place. I soaked my hat in a couple of streams but the only ones that were flowing fast were down steep embankments. Eventually I found a small "waterfall" near the road crossing and knew I had to get a drink. It was either cramp out or take my chances with an upset stomach if the water turned out not to be to as clean as it looked (it turned out to be fine). 

The backstory was that I had to make the 3.10pm ferry as the 4pm ferry doesn't connect with the train. I remembered that I had a gel so I took that and pushed on. The next 5k or so wasn't pretty, especially annoying when I cramped up on a downhill runnable section. I thought Beinglass would never arrive but I was so delighted to see those tents after about 30km. It was now 3pm and it was clear I wasn't covering the remaining ground to make the ferry. In some ways this was my first positive break as it took the pressure off . So I got full fat juice and refilled my flask. It was great in the beer garden chatting with the walkers all sipping cold pints. However I took my eye off the clock and had to rush out of the Farm. I had no idea the route south had such a steep climb and this section was really slow. I was still in walk-run mode although the refulling had reduced the cramp.  

At one point I asked a couple of ladies how far to the ferry. She said it was about 20 mins away, and I only had 20 mins to catch the 4.10pm ferry. I was now back under pressure but I wasn't lifting my feet and tripped more than once. Eventually Ardlui came into site and I was one happy  many to eventually raise the buoy on the flagpole to signal the ferry. 

My drama wasn't over! The train was at 4.15 and by the time we got ashore at Ardlui I had missed it. I sat in the hotel gardens absolutely burst. I checked Citylink. No buses until 8pm. I checked Scotrrail. Next train 7.50pm, but what's this? The 4.15 train had been delayed and was due at 4:35. Watch check, 4:30, oh man. I scrambled everything back into my bag and "sprinted" to the station , probably a couple of hundred meters but felt like the end of the Auldhouse TT. 

Over the A82, up the stairs and onto the platform just as the train pulled in.  

So what are the takeaways?

• don't run 10 miles in the heat the night before 
• respect the WHW. I had allowed for covering the 30km at an easy road pace. No chance. 
• if you make a mistake (my heavy rucksack), take your medicine and don't compound it  
• I don't have the experience regarding fueling and made just about every mistake in the book
• don't try and run 30k on 500ml of fluid and 1 gel. I came home with an untouched packed lunch. 

There were some lighter moments, like reapplying Vaselene at the sinks in the Green Welly as all the cubicles were full. I'm not sure the pensioners on the Lochs and Glens tour bus understood what they had walked in to. 

As I write this my legs are aching and I have a face as scarlet as a beacon. 

Will I be back ... hmmm! 

Stephen

Club Training Thursday 9th May

Thursday's session is a longish easy run (for the half dozen signed up for the Loch Leven half, I recommend that you do only half of the run).

The route is through the Glen, coming out at Langlands, up to Leaburn Rd via Park Farm, turn left then immediately right and keep climbing up to the cross roads. Turn left at the cross roads and follow the top road along to the end. Turn left back down the hill to Leaburn Rd. Turn left and run along Leaburn Rd to the end where it turns right down the hill. At the bottom turn right and then left past the kennels and along Shields Rd to Greenhills Rd. Turn right and return to the club. Those cutting the run short as a pre-race run should turn right on Leaburn Rd after Park Farm and run along to the end of Leaburn Rd, down the hill, right then left past the kennels etc.

This should be an easy, totally aerobic,conversational run in your pack.

Alan

Club Training Monday 6th May

Monday's session is another in our sequence of 10k race specific sessions. The session is 8 x 1km at target 10k race pace (so easy to work out if your watch is set in km's!). e.g. 35 minute 10km is 3:30/km, 40 minute is 4:00/km, 50 minute is 5:00/km, so very easy to calculate. The recovery is half the effort time (approx). To make this more specific to the packs where a small range of abilities will be present, I am setting the recoveries as follows:

10k range    Recovery

35 - 40        2:00 minutes

40 - 45        2:15 minutes

45 - 50        2:30 minutes

50 - 55        2:45 minutes

55 - >60      3:00 minutes

Take account of who is in your pack when setting the recovery.

This will be done as a continuous session out in the country. Warm-up through the glen to the bridge at the Strathaven Rd and climb up the bank, run out to the Crutherland, cross over and turn into the country road on the right. Gather at the usual 90 degree left hand bend where we often start reps. Start the first rep, at the junction with Leaburn Rd, turn right along Leaburn Rd, stay on Leaburn Rd all the way to the end where it turns downhill. At the bottom of the hill, turn right and then left past the kennels on Shields Rd. At Greenhills Rd turn right back to the Strathaven Rd.

It's a bit undulating but apart from the first rep, should be flat enough to be able to average the target pace over each rep. During the recovery, the faster ones should turn around and jog back to their pack.

Alan

May Auldhouse 5k Time Trial

18 Harriers turned out on a reasonable weather night on the first Thursday of May to set their benchmark times for the Summer season of Auldhouse 5k time trials. This was more Harriers than any of the TT's from last year and was particularly impressive given that it was the day after the Troon 10k and the SVHC Snowball Race, at both of which a number of the Harriers were competing.

Fastest time of the day and on an Auldhouse 5k TT debut went to Jordan Stewart in an impressive 17:39. Fastest lady and setting a new course best was Karen Allen in a very impressive time of 20:24, highlighting the massive aerobic boost that marathon training gives and how that carries forward into all the distances we race over. Karen's time was 1 second faster than her previous course best but that was set in 2014 and Karen's best times in recent years have all been in the 21's and 22's. Very well done Karen on a return to your best form.

Karen was not the only Harrier to record a course best. Julia Pechlof continues to improve each year and knocked 35 seconds off her best to record 22:46, another impressive improvement which will no doubt reduce further through the Summer.

There were also a few first timers on the Auldhouse TT. Surprisingly, this was Gerry Connelly's first time, starting off with an excellent 20:18. Tony Goodall recorded 26:27 and Tammy Hutchison 25:04 and both will be improve as the season goes on, now that they have their eye in.

Several more Harriers demonstrated their careful progression back to form. Jacqueline Balmer is on the way back with a 26:23; Andrew Buchanan set his first sub-20 time for many years recording an excellent 19:47, again off the back of consistent high mileage marathon training; Robert Gibson was significantly faster than his best from last year and set his fastest for several years recording 23:15; Richard Lawton recorded a cautious 26:28; Frances Ferguson is heading back to form with 23:48, which was a faster time than two years ago, despite racing in the Snowball Race the night before; Geo Ferguson was also racing in the Snowball Race and recorded 24:30 on tired legs; Gordon McInally is definitely on the post-injury comeback and will improve significantly on his 25:39 as the season goes on; Ian McKenzie knocked 2 minutes off last year's time with a 26:43; Claire McSorely has missed the TT for the past 3 years but is already ahead of her last recorded time with a 23:30; Jim Mearns is recovering from a persistent injury and set the benchmark for the season with 23:08; Eddie Reid ran his fastest time for 5 years, finishing in 22:47 and confirming the rumour that he is ready for a big leg on the WHW; this was an injury test for Russell Couper which he passed in 29:57.

Well done all and hopefully we see even more at the next edition on 6th June. All results are available in the Auldhouse Time Trial link in the Blog menu on the left or here.

Alan

Club Training Thursday 2nd May - Auldhouse 5k TT

Thursday is the first Auldhouse 5k TT of the year. For those new to the club, these occur on the first Thursday of each month from May to September. This is an individual time trial where each runner is set  off at 30 second intervals, with the fastest runners starting last such that we roughly all finish within a few minutes of each other. All the previous times are available from the link in the menu to the left of the blog page. The Auldhouse 5k is a wheel measured 5k and counts for the purpose of performance rewards. It's not an easy 5k though!

Register for training as normal as the registration list will form the basis of the start list, making it easy for the timekeeper. I'll probably come straight to EK from my work to time the event.

Alan